Hogwarts At A New Direction
by Star Crossing
Summary: Kurt Hummel simply wants to enjoy his last few years at Hogwarts without any trouble; but that seems impossible to accomplish when he just happens to run into and befriend Blaine Anderson, the grandson of the famous "Boy Who Lived"...
1. A Stranger Is No Longer A Stranger

So...I have absolutely _noooo_ idea how this happened, but when I was suffering _major _writer's block this week, this came to my head, and I had a random burst of inspiration. I've never written an AU before, so I really enjoyed trying something new with this.

This story takes place about forty years after The Deathly Hallows.

Okay, now, let's got on with the first chapter, shall we?

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><p><strong>Chapter 1<strong>

**A Stranger Is No Longer A Stranger**

The street was practically deserted as John Anderson reached the front door to the Leaky Cauldron.

When he realized his companion was no longer beside him, he turned. "This isn't the time for a stroll, son," he said anxiously.

"I'm coming, Father," the boy replied as he sped up his pace to keep up.

John opened the door and stepped inside, holding it open for his son as he followed.

"Mr. Anderson!" called the bartender. "The usual today?"

"I can't Henry," John said, flashing him a friendly smile. His eyes raked the room for any eavesdroppers before he continued, "I'm taking my boy to get all of his necessities for the year."

"Ah, yes, the new school year is approaching, isn't it? What year are you again, m'boy?"

"Fifth year, sir," the teen answered.

"Gryffindor, ain't ya?"

He nodded. "Yes, sir."

"Oh, you know you don't need to be calling me _sir._ I bet you're around enough formality when it comes to dealing with all those professors the whole school year."

"I don't mind. I respect all of my professors very highly."

Henry's lip curled into a small smile. "As do I, boy."

"Well, we really should go," John chimed in. "We have loads to purchase."

Henry picked a glass up off the counter and set it on the back shelf. "Will I be seeing you around here again soon, Johnny?"

"As long as I don't have to spend time sending my boy Howlers for trouble he's causing," John replied humorously. "In other words, probably, yes."

"You sure about that, John?" Henry joked back.

"He's not a troublemaker like his grandfather, or his father for that matter," John laughed.

"Well, I wouldn't say his grandfather was a _troublemaker;_ a hero maybe."

John nodded. "That he was."

"Father..." the boy began.

"Right, right, sorry. Well, it was nice seeing you, Henry."

"You two as well. Have a good year at school, m'boy."

The teen nodded and smiled. "Thank you. See you around, Henry."

And with that, the Andersons made their way to the back door of the bar.

"Are you ready, son?" John asked as they reached the brick wall.

"More than I'll ever be, I guess."

John chuckled. "You sound like your mother when you say that," he said before reaching up to tap the wall in a certain pattern.

After a moment, the bricks began to swivel and twist into a large archway, revealing a busy street filled with folks dressed in a variety of different cloaks and robes.

"Welcome back to Diagon Alley, son."

"It's good to be back, Dad."

"Come, let's see your list. You have it with you, yes?" John asked.

"Yeah, I brought it," his son said, reaching into his jean pocket and pulling out a small piece of paper; he handed it to him.

"Let's see...It looks like you'll only need to buy a new set of robes and your text books for the year. Why don't we go over to _Flourish & Blotts_ and get you the books first."

"Sure, Dad."

After they had managed to wade through the large crowd, John looked through the window. His eyes narrowed and he frowned. "On second thought, why don't you just head over to _Madam Malkin's_ now? I can get your books."

"But Dad, why-"

"Just go, son," he said with a hint of sudden anger in his voice. "I'll just meet you there after I'm done here."

"I...uh...okay, Dad."

"Now go." John gripped his son by the shoulder and, rather forcefully, turned him toward _Madam Malkin's_.

The boy just managed to catch a glimpse of who his father had been looking at before he stumbled away.

Paul Karofsky.

Realization crashed over him as he watched his father disappear into _Flourish & Blotts_. As he reached the robe shop, he heard Madam Malkin's voice muffled through the door. Slowly, he opened the door. He stepped inside and saw her standing at the counter talking to another boy.

She looked up at him as he walked in. "Ah, Mr. Anderson!"

He saw the boy at the counter snap his head around to look at him.

"My, you've really grown in just a year. I'll be with you in a moment."

He nodded.

She turned back to the boy at the counter. "I'll go get your robes, dear."

"Thank you," the boy said, turning his attention back to her before she drifted out to the back room.

There was a small silence between the two boys.

The boy at the counter stood up from where he was leaning against the counter.

The boy still at the door stuffed his hands in his pockets.

"Anderson?"

He looked up. "What?"

"Anderson. That's your name, right?"

"Uh, yeah...Why?"

"You're...I...uh...you don't...happen to be related to John and Lily Anderson, do you?"

The son looked at him, slightly puzzled. "They're my mum and dad."

The other boy's eyes widened. "Wow..." His lip curled into a small smile.

The tension in the room seemed to fade.

The Anderson son subtly returned the smile. "My name is Blaine," he said, outstretching his hand.

The other boy hesitated for a moment before stepping over to meet him halfway; he took Blaine's hand and shook it timidly. "Kurt. Kurt Hummel."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Kurt."

"Well, it's an honor to meet you, Blaine."

Blaine quirked an eyebrow in confusion. "It is?"

"You said that you're Lilly Anderson's son, right?"

"Yes."

"Well then you must know what that means."

Blaine shrugged and shook his head.

"Why, you're the grandson of the 'Chosen One' of course!"

"...I...what...You've heard of my grandfather?"

"How could I not? He's a legend! He defeated the darkest, most dangerous, and most feared wizard in the world!"

That last statement took Blaine a bit by surprise. It had been so long since he had ever heard any stranger mention anything about the heroic accomplishments of his grandfather, ones that were from so many years before.

At Blaine's silence, Kurt worried that he may have irritated him, and his smile disappeared. "I-I'm sorry; you probably get that a lot, don't you?"

"No, i-it's fine," Blaine replied quickly. "I mean, I-I'm used to it by now, I guess..."

Kurt pursed his lips. "Sorry, I shouldn't have said anything."

Blaine's face softened, and he smiled reassuringly. "Don't apologize; it has become rather flattering, actually," he joked.

Kurt laughed lightly. "My mum used to always tell me the stories that her mum told her about all off his adventures."

Blaine nodded. "My mum could never stop gushing about Grandpa Harry when I was younger. She loved to tell me about how he saved my grandmum from the Chamber of Secrets and killed the basilisk with the sword of Gryffindor when he was only a second year."

"Your grandfather is a good man."

"That he is. You know, it's been so long since anyone has ever asked me about him, let-alone a stranger."

"Well, I wouldn't exactly call myself a stranger..."

"What do you mean?"

"I've seen you around, at school. You're in Gryffindor, aren't you?"

"Yeah...I guess I just haven't seen you around..."

Kurt's eyes lowered, but he faked a smile. "I'm not surprised."

"What do you me-"

"Here you are dear, sorry about the wait." Madam Malkin reappeared at that moment with Kurt's robes.

"That's alright. Thank you." He gathered up the bundle in his arms before turning back to Blaine, who was shocked as he

glanced down at the silver and green tie on the top of the bundle.

"You're in Slytherin."

Kurt froze.

"Your tie..."

"Oh, yeah. I am."

"That's interesting."

Kurt looked puzzled. "How so?"

"I didn't get that impression from you; you're rather nice."

Kurt's face flushed and his lip curled bashfully. "Well, not all Slytherins are jerks, you know."

"I know...only the ones I know. Well, until now, I guess."

Kurt's smile widened and his eyes gleamed at him.

_Wow, he has really pretty eyes_, Blaine thought.

Kurt saw a strange movement and a flash of red light, and his eyes wondered for a moment to look through the window behind Blaine. His smile fell and his eyes filled with panic.

"Kurt? Are you okay?"

"B-Blaine...isn't that your dad?" he said, pointing out the window.

Blaine turned, and his face mimicked Kurt's.

His father was standing outside _Flourish & Blotts_, shouting and pointing his wand...at Paul Karofsky.

"Dad!" He flew out of the robe shop, banging the door open as he sped toward his obviously furious father. "Dad! Stop!"

Kurt stuffed his new robes into his messenger bag. "Blaine, wait!" he called, following his lead.

"Dad!"

"I'll teach you to mock my family, Karofsky!"

"You don't have the guts, Anderson!"

_"Nobody_ speaks of my son in such a manner! Nobody!"

Blaine flung himself at his father, grabbing his wrist, causing John to stumble over.

"Blaine!"

"Father, what the _hell_ do you think you're doing?"

"Let go of me, Blaine!"

"Stop this! You can't retaliate like this! Violence isn't the answer!"

"I am only defending you, son! I refuse to listen to that rotten scoundrel speak about my family in such a mocking tone."

Karofsky cackled. "_Please_, Anderson; your son sets such low personal standards and then consistently fails to achieve them."

Blaine didn't know why, but he took those words to heart, and he began to feel his insides boiling with anger. "Excuse me?"

"And to think his grandfather is the famous Mr. Potter! I'm surprised you're not ashamed to be seen with him in public!"

Blaine shook with rage, his hand flying to his own wand. "_Flipendo_!" He shouted.

A jet of blue light shot out of the tip of his wand, and Karofsky stumbled backwards with a loud grunt.

"Blaine, stop it!"

Blaine felt a pair of hands latch onto the back of his shoulders. He turned his head and locked his eyes with Kurt's. "Kurt, let go!"

"Stop it, Blaine, this is not the way to handle things!"

"Dad?" came another boy's voice.

Blaine saw the look in Kurt's eyes change drastically from panicked to horrified. "Kurt? 'You okay?"

"I have to go."

"What-"

"I'll see you at school, Blaine," and with that, Kurt took off down the street.

"Watch your back, Hummel," he heard the other boy call to him.

Blaine's head snapped in the direction of his voice.

"Dad, are you okay?" the boy asked, trying to help his father up.

Still on the ground, Karofsky brushed his son off. "I'm fine, David."

He finally got to his feet. "Come, son. We're leaving."

"But I still have to get new robes-"

"Another day, David. I can't stand another second around these simpletons."

"Then get out of my sight, Karofsky!" John yelled.

"No need to tell me twice, Anderson!" He yanked his son by the sleeve until they reached the brick wall at the end of the street.

Blaine turned to his father. "Are you okay, Dad?"

"Yes, yes, I'm fine. Are you alright?"

"Yeah."

The two of them stood there in silence for a few moments.

"Hey, Dad?"

"Hm?"

"...Is...is what Karofsky said true? Are you...ashamed of me?"

His father frowned.

"Look, I know I shouldn't listen to whatever anyone says about...well, me...but...I mean, it's a hard thing to be open about with certain people."

"What is? That I have a gay son?"

Blaine's eyes lowered. "Well..."

John's hands came up to rest on his son's shoulders. "Blaine, my son, many people refuse to be accepting of that kind of thing, but that doesn't mean that I'm not."

Blaine's lips twitched.

"You are a good person, and that shouldn't have to be determined simply based off of what gender you find yourself attracted to."

"Dad..."

"No matter what, I love you just as much."

Blaine finally allowed himself to smile.

"Okay?"

Blaine nodded. "Yeah, Dad."

"And besides," John continued, leaning closer to Blaine, "your brother is the one that drives everyone insane."

Blaine laughed. "True."

"Come on, I still have to buy your textbooks. Karofsky cut me off on my way in, and...well...you saw what happened..."

Blaine chuckled. "Sure, Dad."

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><p>Well, that's all for now. Sorry it's a bit short, but I hope you all enjoyed.<p>

Thanks everyone for reading, and the next chapter should be up soon! :)

REVIEWS EQUAL KLISSES! :D


	2. All Aboard The Hogwarts Express

Here we are at last, the second chapter! Hooray! This chapter contains a bit of fluff, but it's not very obvious, so you'll have to watch out for it or you'll miss it. I promise, later chapters will have lots and lots of fluff, so much fluff that it will rot your teeth out!

Somebody stop me from my rant! Gah!

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><p><strong>Chapter 2<strong>

**All Aboard The Hogwarts Express**

"Come along, Blaine. We can't let you miss the train." Lily's long red hair danced on the back of her neck as she turned around to make sure their son was still following behind them.

"I'm coming, Mum," he called back, pushing the trolley through the sea of passerby.

Skye screeched in her cage, rustling her feathers.

"Don't worry, son, we're almost there," John said.

Once Blaine had caught up to them, Lily put her hand on his shoulder. "Are you nervous, sweetheart?"

"Not really. I've heard that the O.W.L.s fifth year aren't so bad as long as I study hard."

"Well, we can only trust that you will," she said, smiling.

But Blaine didn't seem to really return the smile.

"Oh, you'll be fine. I remember my O.W.L. exams very well."

John nodded in agreement. "As do I. They truly do help you figure out your plans for the future. You do still want to be an Auror, don't you?"

"Yeah, I do. It's the only career I've ever wanted to have."

"Then we can only hope that you'll do well, for your sake."

Blaine looked up at his father. "No pressure, right?"

John chuckled. "Don't worry, we know you'll be brilliant.

"We're there," Lily spoke up as they reached the barrier that separated Platforms Nine and Ten.

"Shall we make haste?" John said, making a gesture for them to go forward.

"After you, Dad."

He grinned. "Very well," he replied before walking up to the barrier and leaning against it casually. A moment later, he was gone.

None of the passing Muggles seemed to notice.

"I'll follow you," Lilly told her son, taking her hand from his shoulder.

He nodded. Walking the distance up to the barrier, he imitated his father, leaning against the brick. He tightened his grip on the trolley, and before he knew it, where he had been standing a split second ago, a crowded platform waiting for the next train, was now jam-packed with a variety of witches and wizards; and right in the middle of it all, was the Hogwarts Express itself. Blaine found his father standing in front of him again.

His mother appeared through the wall a moment later. "Well, here we are."

"You know, Mum, I think I'm really ready to go back."

"As ready as you'll ever be, right?"

Blaine grinned. "Yeah."

The train's whistle blew, and the rustling of the engine was gradually becoming louder.

"I guess that means you have to go."

Blaine turned to his mother and gave her a small sad smile. "I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you, too, sweetheart, but we know you'll enjoy yourself so much this year."

"You'll probably forget about us once you get there," John added.

"Hardly."

He gripped his son's shoulders affectionately. "Well, just know that we're still at home thinking about you."

"And don't forget," Lily said, "we'll be writing you soon, and we expect a reply."

Blaine nodded. "Don't worry, you'll get one."

The whistle blew again, and the rest of the young witches and wizards began stuffing their baggage into the chambers under the train, and began to fill in through the train's doors.

"Gotta go, can't miss the train."

Lily brought her hands up to cup Blaine's face and kissed his forehead. "Take care of yourself."

"I will, Mum," he said, picking up his own suitcase out of the trolley and taking it over to one of the chambers. When he walked back over, he reached in and snatched up Skye's cage.

Skye hooted at him and flapped her wings excitedly.

Blaine grinned at her. "Come on, girl, let's go." He stepped up to the door with a last look at his parents before disappearing inside. As he walked through to the back of the train, he found an unoccupied open window, and stuck his head out of it. He spotted his folks still standing beside the barrier. The train began to move, and he called to them and waved, as did the rest of the students.

They spotted him and both flashed him smiles, happily waving at him as their figures began to get smaller and smaller until they were no longer in sight.

Blaine edged his head back inside and began to make his way to find his friends. He searched through the corridors for someone he knew, but the first thing he found was an empty compartment; so he opened it and stepped inside. He sat down in one of the seats and set Skye's cage down next to him. He sat there for a few minutes, just staring out the window as the outside world flew past.

Skye hooted softly in her cage beside him.

He looked over at her and stuck a hand through the metal bars to gently stroke her feathers.

And then he heard the compartment door slide open.

"Do you mind?" a strangely familiar voice asked. "Everywhere else is full."

Blaine looked up and met eyes with the same brunette boy he had met in Diagon Alley a few weeks ago. He felt his heart flutter as he gazed into his beautiful blue eyes. "Kurt."

Kurt's lip curled. "Blaine."

Blaine grinned. "I would love for you to join me."

Kurt stepped inside and closed the door before he sat down on the seat across from Blaine. He was holding an object with a cover over it.

Blaine heard a hoot that didn't sound like Skye. "You have an owl, too?" he asked curiously.

Kurt slowly grabbed the cover and pulled it over the top of what turned out to be a beautiful young white barn owl.

"Blaine, meet Pavarotti; he was my birthday present last year."

"He's beautiful."

Pavarotti hooted again.

"So, how have you been, Kurt?"

Kurt leaned back in the seat and crossed his legs. "Life is alright, I guess, but it's nice to be finally going back. Hogwarts has really become home to me."

"And real home feels like the second home?"

"Exactly."

"Mm, I feel the same way."

"And how have you been, Blaine?"

Blaine nodded. "Alright."

The room was suddenly encompassed in silence, but oddly, Blaine didn't feel uncomfortable by it. He was simply just staring at Kurt, who was now feeding Pavarotti an owl treat from his pocket.

"So...you know so much about my family..."

Kurt looked up.

"Why don't you tell me about yours?" At first, he expected Kurt to seem flattered by Blaine's interest in his background.

Instead, Kurt's smile simply vanished, and Blaine immediately regretted even asking.

"Sorry if I seem to be invading your private life, I was just a bit curious-"

"It's fine, Blaine, I don't mind."

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want-"

"It's alright. It's just...my childhood...it was...hard."

"Really?"

Kurt nodded. "My mom was an Auror. When I was eight, they sent her to find the headquarters to some secret dark wizard group, and she found it, and...one of the group's members hit her with a killing curse."

"I'm so sorry."

"It's alright. I still have my dad..."

"...Yeah..."

"Well, and my stepmother, Carole; my dad married her a few years ago. She's such a sweet woman, I adore her. And besides, it's been so many years since I lost my mom, so I'm mostly over it."

"Tell me about your dad."

"He works at the Ministry," Kurt began.

"No kidding? Which department?"

"Magical Transportation."

"Oh, that's cool. My dad works down in the basement, in the Courtrooms."

Their conversation was interrupted by a loud knock on the glass of the compartment door.

Both of the boys looked up and saw a blonde girl standing outside waving at them.

She slid the door open. "Hey, babe! I found you!"

Kurt's smile faded. "Oh, hey Brit."

She shut the door behind her and, much to Blaine's surprise, sat down on Kurt's lap. "I've missed you since last night," she said with a flirty tone, wrapping her arms around his neck and nestling into his chest.

Kurt seemed rather uncomfortable by her affections. "Brittney, you know I don't like you being all touchy with me when I'm in the middle of talking to my friends. It's rude."

Blaine had to suppress the grin that was trying to force its way out of him. He already considers me a friend, he thought.

"Oh, sorry, babe. I didn't hear you guys talking through the glass, so I assumed you weren't."

Kurt gave her a funny look. "...Okay..."

Blaine was beginning to feel awkward, and, for some reason, a bit angry. He didn't know why, but he didn't really enjoy watching this girl hanging all over Kurt in front of him. No, he thought, it's none of your business. He looked over at Skye just to have something else to look at, when Kurt let out a loud yelp. Blaine looked up and saw that he was shuddering into the seat; he looked where they were staring and saw something that almost made him jump.

Sticking out right at the foot of the door, was the head of a black and white striped cat. Literally, half of it was in, half of it was out of the compartment.

Kurt huffed in frustration. "I thought you said you were going to get that Intangibility Charm off of him!" he said.

"Oh, I was, but I realized I like it that he'll be able to pop up whenever I'll need him for help on my homework."

Kurt gave Blaine a look that seemed to say "Help me out of this, please!"

Blaine quirked an eyebrow in confusion.

The blonde seemed to finally give up and slid out of Kurt's lap. "So, babe, who's your friend here?" she asked as she picked up the cat.

"I'm Blaine," he said quickly.

She smiled at him. "I'm Brittany," she flashed him a flirty smile. "I'm his girlfriend." She held the cat in front of him. "And this is Lord Tubbington."

Blaine fought back the urge to wince; the foul smell oozing off the cat disgusted him. "Nice to meet both of you."

Pavarotti shrieked in his cage, and Skye flapped her wings angrily at the cat.

Both of the boys had to struggle to keep them calm.

"So, what were you guys talking about?" Brittany asked, not seeming to pay much attention to them.

Kurt glanced at Blaine, who shrugged. "School, the usual."

"Oh..." Brittany paused. "Well, okay." She shifted to look at Kurt. "Come on, babe; I want to go find the candy trolley." She stood up and gripped Kurt's sleeve.

"I-uh, okay," he stammered out as she dragged him away. "See you later, Blaine."

"Yeah, see you later..."

He watched as Kurt was tugged out of the compartment and into the corridor. Blaine leaned back in his chair and sighed, glad that the awkward moment was over.

A few more minutes passed by as Blaine sat there trying to sooth Skye; Blaine knew how much she hated cats.

Another knock on the door.

Blaine groaned. "What now?" he asked himself under his breath. He looked up, but his annoyed expression transformed into one of relief.

The door slid open again, and in walked the very girl whom Blaine had been looking for before.

"Hey Santana."

"I finally found you. Have you been in here this whole time?"

Blaine nodded.

"Sorry; I was looking for you, and I managed to find Artie, but there was no sign of you anywhere."

"S'alright. I was occupied for a while."

"I saw another guy come in here not too long ago, from Slytherin."

"Kurt."

"Yeah, him. Were you talking to him?"

Blaine looked confused. "Yeah, why?"

Santana frowned. "I don't know about him, B."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, he is in Slytherin."

"So?"

"Slytherins are nothing but trouble, B; you don't want to try making friends with them."

"Seriously? You're telling me who I should befriend based on who's in what house?"

"Look, I'm not trying to judge anyone; all I'm saying is that they can't be trusted. They're not necessarily bad people, they just aren't the type that...a Gryffindor should be wasting their time interacting with. You both are complete opposites."

"Well, I guess opposites attract."

Santana's eyes went wide. "Oh no..."

"What?"

"Don't tell me...you're into him?"

Blaine could have sworn he felt his heart drop. "I- what?"

"What you just said...you like him!"

"No! I mean, I just...I can't."

"Why?"

"He has a girlfriend, which means he's probably straight."

Santana snickered.

Blaine quirked an eyebrow. "What?"

"You seriously think he's straight?"

"Well, I guess."

"Oh, please, the entirety of him screams 'gay' to me! And you know how good my gay-dar is."

"You don't even know him!"

Santana snorted. "I bet I know more about him than you do," she retorted jokingly.

"You didn't even know his name a second ago!"

"Oh? And you're already on a first-name basis with him, are you?"

"Actually, yeah, I am."

Santana rolled her eyes.

"He's a nice guy; what's wrong with that?"

"Never mind."

"No, tell me what you were going to say."

"Just drop it, B. I know you, and no matter what I say, you're gonna be defensive about it."

"I am not being defensive!"

Santana smirked. "I rest my case."

Blaine slumped back in his seat. "Ugh, whatever Santana."

"Just be careful around him, okay? I don't want my best friend getting hurt just because of some stupid boy."

Blaine just smiled appreciatively at hearing the "best friend" part of her statement. "Don't worry about me. By the way, you said you saw Artie, right?"

"Yeah."

"Where is he?"

"He's with Finn and Quinn. We should go find them; they were worried that you might not have gotten on the train."

Blaine chuckled. "Okay."

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><p>And scene! Next one will probably be up some time next week. REVIEW!<p> 


	3. A New Beginning

**Chapter 3**

**A New Beginning**

The Hogwarts Express finally pulled into Hogsmeade Station, the engine rustling to a stop and the whistle blowing loudly. After a few minutes, the train's doors opened and students poured out onto the platform, chattering excitedly as they stepped out to fetch their baggage,

Blaine stepped off the train and walked over to the chamber where he had stuck his suitcase and found it already open. "_Accio_ _suitcase_!" he said.

The suitcase flew out of the chamber and planted itself directly at his feet.

"Nice one," Artie said from his other side.

Santana stepped in front of them. "_Accio suitcase_" she mimicked, and her baggage jumped out and landed beside her.

Artie copied their action, only resulting with his suitcase practically pelting itself at them and hitting Blaine in the knee with a thud.

"Ow!" Blaine winced.

"Sorry, sorry! Are you okay, B?"

"Uhn, yeah, I'm fine," Blaine replied with slight disdain.

"New wand."

"Well, that would explain why you almost killed me with that Levitation Charm on the train," Santana said, giving Artie an evil glare.

"First years this way!" a voice called above the chatter.

The three of them turned and looked to find Professor Sylvester, Hogwarts' gamekeeper.

"All first years, follow me!" she called again.

Santana and Artie followed closely behind Blaine as he shuffled out of the station and into Hogsmeade. They walked a little ways before reaching the Thestral carriages.

"Well, I guess we're here," Blaine said.

"Yep. Back at school," Artie agreed.

"You guys ready?"

"We kind of have to be, don't we?" Santana said.

"Well, then, let's go."

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><p>Blaine had really forgotten over the holidays how big the Great Hall was. He looked up; the bewitched ceiling was pouring down raining now.<p>

"Hey, Blaine! Over here!"

He looked toward the familiar voice and a short brunette boy with his hand waving above his head managed to catch his eye over the flooded tables.

"Nick!" He watched Santana part from them and head toward the Ravenclaw table before he gladly made his way over and sat down beside him, Artie following suit.

"How are you guys?"

"Fine," Artie replied simply.

"Not bad. You?" Blaine asked.

"Alright, just ready for school to start up again. Sounds crazy, doesn't it?"

"Nah, I feel the same way. Summer holidays were far too long for my liking. It seems like everyone feels that way this year."

"So," Artie said, "are we gonna start the feast soon or what? I'm starving!"

Blaine snorted. "Do you ever stop eating?"

"You don't ever see me eating in between classes, do you?" Artie retorted jokingly.

"Students!" a booming voice echoed throughout the Hall.

They all looked up.

It was Professor Figgins, the headmaster. "It is with great pleasure on my part to welcome you to another year at Hogwarts! Now, it is an honor to introduce the newest addition to our staff- your new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher- Professor Schuester!"

There was applause as a rather young-looking man stood up from the staff table. He ran a hand through his mussed brunette hair as he waved to the students.

Blaine looked to Nick. "What happened to Professor Ryerson?"

"Didn't you hear? He came down with Spattergroit over the holidays. He said he might have gotten it when he went down to New Zealand or something. He's been at St. Mungo's ever since."

"Now," Figgins continued, "for the sake of all the first years, I must go over the main rules of Hogwarts School."

Blaine could swear he heard a few groans coming from the Slytherin table.

"First of all, the Forbidden Forest is out of bounds- no exceptions. Any student who is dumb enough to go into the forest- and come out alive and in one piece- _will_ be given a detention."

Trent and Jeff snickered.

"Second, please do not try to swim in the Black Lake; the merpeople aren't ever exactly in the mood for visitors."

Now Nick and Thad had to stifle laughter behind their hands.

Blaine rolled his eyes and smiled.

"Lastly, absolutely- and I mean _absolutely no_ owl posts from anything that is _not_ an owl."

Blaine watched the four boys exchange guilty grins. "You guys are nothing but trouble, you know that?"

"Life's too short," Nick retorted. "You gotta make the most of it."

At the front, Figgins stretched his arms out in front of him. "Now, if there aren't any more announcements..." he paused and looked around as if daring someone to interrupt him, "let the feast...begin."

And with that, mounds of food appeared on the brass plates that had been empty only a moment ago.

The Gryffindor boys all dug into the plates and started shoveling food into their mouths.

"Oi, Blaine," Trent said, swallowing a mouthful of sweet potatoes, "what's the plan for Quidditch tryouts this year?"

Blaine gulped a swig of apple juice. "Why are you asking me?"

"Did you not hear?" Jeff said.

Blaine quirked an eyebrow. "Hear what?"

"You're Gryffindor captain this year, man."

"...I...what?"

"Are you not listening? You're captain!"

"But...I thought Wes was still captain! He was only a sixth year last year, wasn't he?"

"Wes said that he was done with it, he didn't want to do it anymore. He wants to spend this year mostly 'focusing on his future career.' Those were his words. He still would love to be on the team, but captaining just isn't his thing apparently."

"That just doesn't make any sense; our team was great last year."

"Blaine, be honest: Did you really like having Wes captain? Did he never drive you insane, or make you want to strangle him?"

Blaine frowned. "Point taken. But...can't somebody else do it this year?"

"I thought you said you wanted to be captain!"

"Yeah, when I'm a sixth year maybe!"

"So...you don't want it?" Trent asked.

Blaine's eyes widened slightly. "Of course I do!" He shrunk back on the edge of the bench. "It's just... I feel like I'm depriving someone else of an opportunity that they deserve more than I do!"

"Look,"Jeff said, "Wes talked to some of the other teammates, and they all agreed that if anyone deserves that position, it's you."

"Yeah," Nick agreed. "The Gryffindor captain is supposed to be strong and brave-hearted and willing to push the team to do its best, in a way that won't make the whole team hate them. Personally, knowing you since second year, you sure seem to fit that description perfectly."

Blaine looked down at his plate and stabbed his turkey with his fork.

"Come on, you can try it for one year, and if you don't like it, you can choose someone else for next year. Okay?"

A brief silence drifted around the group of boys.

Blaine slowly lifted his head to looked at each of his friends.

Trent looked at him pleadingly.

Nick flashed him an encouraging smile.

Jeff simply shrugged.

Thad nodded at him.

Blaine turned to his best friend. "What do you think?" he mumbled.

"Well, you did say you wanted to be captain. I say that if you think you're up for it, why not?" Artie reasoned.

Blaine sighed. "Fine, I'll do it."

* * *

><p>A few weeks passed, and fifth year was already becoming a bit of a struggle for Blaine. Even after only his first few classes, his stack of homework began to pile on. He didn't know why, but it seemed like he saw Kurt almost every time he walked through the corridors, and only so many of those times would they stop and talk, because most of the time he had Brittany hooked on his arm. Blaine still had yet to figure out why this made his cheeks burn, or his body steam with jealousy; all he knew was that every time his chance to enjoy a conversation with Kurt was interrupted by the blonde, or even by Artie andor Santana catching up to him and practically dragging him off to their next class, there was a slight irritation in the back of his throat that almost made him want to jinx somebody.

A few weeks into the school year, Blaine finally managed to set a free date for the Gryffindor team's Quidditch tryouts, when he wasn't doing his Potions assignment, or trying to finish his first project of the year for his Care Of Magical Creatures class.

Evidently trying to find players good enough for each position of the Gryffindor Quidditch team wasn't as hard as Blaine had dreaded that it might be.

He watched the try-outers as he hovered above them, slowly gliding past them all and watching them all give their best performance. He blew his whistle loudly. "Abrams, you're up!" He almost fell backward off his Firebolt as Artie zipped past him, chucking the Quaffle past Nick and into the goal. "Nice," he noted to himself.

Artie turned on his Nimbus and looked at Blaine hopefully.

"Go again!" Blaine told him, trying not to sound biased.

Artie gave him a thumbs up and obeyed. The second time, he scored again.

Blaine nodded in approval. "One more time, Artie. You make this last one and you're on the team."

Artie's lip curled excitedly. He went again. Another score.

Blaine had to resist grinning. "Congratulations, Artie, you made Chaser."

"Yes!" Artie exclaimed, flying up to Blaine and high-fiving him. "You won't regret this captain!"

"I sure hope I won't," Blaine said, the corners of his mouth twitching.

Artie flew away and descended to the ground before landing firmly on his feet.

Blaine turned around and blew his whistle again. "Alright, who's next?" He looked around and looked over to Nick at the goal.

Nick's eyes flickered with slight reluctance.

Blaine couldn't blame him; Artie had just owned his ass. "Hey Trent!"

Said boy looked up.

"Give me a hand," Blaine said.

Trent nodded and kicked up off the ground.

Wes passed him the Quaffle.

He dipped in the air and zipped toward the goal. He flung it toward Nick, who dodged it.

Blaine pursed his lips and nodded approvingly. "Again!"

_Whoosh!_ Another successful dodge.

Blaine heard a broom swiftly fly up next to him.

"It looks like we've got trouble, Blaine," Wes said in his ear.

Blaine looked at him. "What do you mean?"

Wes' eyes narrowed and shifted in a gesture toward the stands.

Blaine followed his eyes and groaned silently.

A small sea of green and silver was filling up the Slytherin stands.

_Can't they ever leave us the hell alone?_ he thought.

But his mind seemed to go numb when he spotted a face that had already etched itself into his mind...

Kurt was looking directly back at him with a small smile on his face. He raised a hand up to wave at Blaine.

Blaine didn't know if he should wave back, or if he should just act like he hadn't seen him. He was surrounded by so many other Gryffindors and Slytherins; he didn't want anybody to have an excuse to gossip about two boys from enemy's houses being friendly to one another. Of course, he didn't want to risk hurting his feelings, so he waved back simply.

Matters were made even worse when he looked closer and noticed that Brittany was with him, and all over his shoulder and thigh.

Blaine felt his cheeks begin to burn. "Go again, Nick!" he yelled, trying to mask his irritation.

_Bam!_ Dodged again.

A few of the Slytherins booed and hissed at them.

Blaine rolled his eyes and grunted annoyedly.

Nick flew up to him looking hopeful.

Blaine faked a smile. "Good news, you're still Keeper."

"Sweet!" Nick said, earning him a high-five. "So, what about the other Chasers? From what it seems like, if we have Artie on the team now, do we need the others?" He laughed.

"Try-outs are just the start, Nick. Artie has speed- and that definitely makes for a decent Chaser- but he still needs to play an official game in order to get the real feel of Quidditch. He hasn't faced the potential aggressions that will come from the opposing team."

Nick shrugged. "Well, I think he'll do fine."

"So do I... I just don't want him to become too full of himself before our first game; it's a dangerous game, he could really hurt himself."

"You worry too much."

"He's my best friend, I'm just looking out for him."

Nick nodded with a smile.

Blaine shifted on his broom before he blew his whistle once more. "Next!"

In the end, Blaine only hoped he hadn't been too biased with tryouts.

Artie was a little too eager about making Chaser along with Trent and Jeff, Nick was keeping his position as Keeper (no pun intended,) and Wes and David were the Beaters.

In the end, Blaine could only hope that he'd chosen the right players for the job. Otherwise, the first Quidditch practice was going to be a long one.

* * *

><p>So, I'm very sorry for the delay of updating this...my spring show was this weekend, and the homework is starting to pile on again now that the end of the year is approaching. Meh! I am soooo done with school!<p>

Anyways, hope you all liked this chapter! REVIEW!


	4. The Peacemaker

**Chapter 4**

**The Peacemaker**

"So, what is it with all these rumors I've been hearing about-" Artie stopped when he realized his friend wasn't paying attention anymore. "Blaine? 'You okay?" He nudged him.

Blaine snapped out of his thoughts. "What?"

"What's up with you? You keep spacing out today."

"Oh, sorry. Lack of sleep, I guess. What were you saying?"

"I heard that some of the other guys are starting a secret club. 'You know anything about that?"

"A secret club?"

"I heard Jeff and Nick talking about it this morning."

"What kind of club?"

"Glee club, I think." Artie expected Blaine to burst out laughing.

Blaine only looked more interested. "They're starting a glee club?"

Artie gave him a funny look. "That's just what I heard... Why?"

"Did they say when or where they're meeting?"

"Why are you so curious about this? I thought you were supposed to be focusing on the team."

"Our next practice isn't until this weekend."

"What? That barely gives us enough time before our first game!"

"Mr. Abrams, Mr. Anderson, could you two please keep your voices down? There are some kids here who would like to be able to focus."

Both the boys sunk back against their seats. "Sorry Professor Pillsbury," they said in unison.

"Our first game isn't for another three weeks," Blaine whispered.

"You seriously think that three weeks give us enough practice time?" Artie whispered back.

"It should be if we practice for two hours, four days a week. And besides, we play against Hufflepuff first; they're not aggressive like Slytherin's players."

Artie raised a finger to retort.

"Don't forget, I'm the captain, Artie. If you don't like my decisions, I'd appreciate if you simply told me. You don't have to protest so forcefully, you know." Blaine smirked.

Artie furrowed his brow. "You wouldn't seriously consider kicking me off the team-"

"Oh, come on, you know I was just kidding." Blaine said.

Artie smiled. "I kinda figured."

* * *

><p>The boys left Transfiguration feeling brain-dead, both struggling with their assignment; they were supposed to be trying to turn their pets into goblets, but neither of them could master the incantation. Artie's wand still had yet to stop giving him problems, and only made Glider his owl turn into a feathery goblet with a beak; meanwhile, Blaine only managed to make Skye's feet form in the<p>

"A glee club? Are you serious?" Santana said snidely as the trio walked down the corridor toward the Great Hall.

"_What_? I just want to go check it out!"

"It's a _glee_ club, B. How does that sound appealing to you?"

"They said it was a _secret_ club. Doesn't that make you want to find out what it's all about?"

"Not really," Artie said with a shrug.

Blaine grunted in frustration. "So I'm curious; who cares? I'm just gonna go to the meeting, find out what they're doing, and see if I like it."

Santana sighed. "Well, I guess I can't stop you from going, so... if you are gonna go, give us the details when you get back."

Blaine smirked. "Now _you_ sound interested."

Santana shot him a glare. "Don't be jumping to conclusions, bub."

"Then stop asking about it," Blaine defended.

Artie snickered quietly to himself, causing Santana to glare at him instead.

"What are you laughing at?"

"From the way you two treat each other, you guys act like a married couple sometimes, you know that?"

Santana's brow furrowed and her eyes narrowed. "Excuse me?"

Artie put his hands up in defense. "Just saying."

Santana's expression softened. "Look, as much as I love Blaine, he's not my type; and I'm obviously not his type either."

Neither of them noticed at first when Blaine veered off to the left.

"Um...guys?"

Their attention snapped back to him. "What?" They asked in unison.

Blaine gestured to the empty corridor spread out in front of him. "The food is this way."

Artie and Santana paused awkwardly for a split second before they exchanged sheepish glances.

"Maybe if you guys would try to go one time without making snide remarks to each other, we could actually get where we're going."

Santana rolled her eyes. "Lead the way, B."

The trio strolled simultaneously down the corridor, switching the conversation to the topic of the week's assignments.

"Glider flew off as soon as class ended," Artie said. "I wouldn't be surprised if he purposely doesn't bring me any post for at least a few days."

"I'm sure he's not as mad at you as Skye is at me," Blaine replied. "She was screeching almost the entire time; she even tried to bite me at one point."

"You know, I'm surprised they don't classify Animal Transfiguration as animal _cruelty_," Santana chimed in. "Honestly, I'm surprised the school hasn't received any complaints about it."

"Maybe they have, but they're just trying to cover it up," Artie reasoned. "You remember that story your grandfather told us, Blaine? About when You-Know-Who was still alive? How the Ministry tried so hard to convince everyone that he was dead, that they were all safe?"

"You can say his name Artie; he's been dead for years, and all the Death Eaters are either dead or still barely alive in Azkaban," Blaine told him. "But yeah, I remember. The Ministry didn't want to believe it for themselves; they wanted to believe that they were still managing to keep everybody safe. That's why Fudge supposedly 'retired' after people discovered Voldemort was really back."

Blaine was about to continue, but he was cut off by another voice a little ways off in the distance.

"I told you, you don't want to push me, Hummel."

"What are you gonna do, Karofsky? Punch the Slytherin out of me?"

"Shut up!"

"Good luck with that. You've been taunting me for the last year, and I'm done!"

"I said shut it, Hummel!"

Before Blaine knew it, he had picked up his pace.

"B, what are you doing?"

"Sounds like trouble!"

"It's none of our business!" Artie warned, trying to grab his arm.

"I don't care; if you want something to stop, you have to stop it yourself!" Blaine sped down the corridor, searching for the voices. He had seen a lot of bullying in his life- heck, he himself had been bullied too many times to count- but what he found was rather shocking.

David Karofsky had his wand drawn at the ready, aiming at...

Kurt.

Blaine's eyebrows rose in surprise.

"What do you want, Anderson?" Karofsky said when he saw Blaine standing there.

Blaine frowned. "What do you think you're doing, Karofsky?"

"Teaching this Slither-slime a lesson about watching where he's going."

Kurt snorted. "Yeah, because you slamming me into the wall means that _I_ need a lesson! God, Karofsky; does hippocracy run in your family or something?"

This commented seemed to set Karofsky off. He snatched Kurt up by his green and silver tie and shoved him into the wall. "What did you say, Hummel?"

Kurt gagged under his tight grip.

"I hope I didn't just hear you say anything against _my_ family, because then I'd have to go all Cruciatus on you," he growled.

Kurt stared at him through narrow eyes. "I'd like to see you try."

Seeing what was coming next, Blaine had his hand at his wand and raised at Karofsky before he could even think about it. "_Diffindo!_" he shouted.

Karofsky yelped out and released Kurt, who fell in a heap onto the stone floor. Karofsky's hand flew to his wrist, which now held a small cut on the skin. He looked up at Blaine, and boy, was he pissed off now. "Anderson! You're going to regret doing that in a few seconds!" He charged at Blaine and grabbed him by the hem of his shirt. He pulled him up aggressively to look him square in the face. "You think you're so great because of your family history. Well, I hate to break it to you, but that means absolutely nothing! You don't have half the guts your grandfather had, you are nothing compared to him or your parents! So no matter how blind your arrogance makes you, you'll never be a hero like them!"

"_Diffindo!"_

Karofsky yelped again, swearing loudly.

Before Blaine knew it, he was on the ground, head hitting the hard stone; the loud thud that it produced echoed through the corridor. He lay there with a blurred vision as he heard voices hovering above him.

"Artie, go see that Blaine's okay," Santana's voice came; "I'll take care of this punk."

"What do _you_ want J Lo?"

"Excuse me?"

"Blaine? Blaine! Can you hear me buddy? Are you alright?" Artie swore under his breath.

"_Flipendo!"_

Karofsky let out an "oof!" as he tumbled backward onto the floor.

"Why can't you just leave everybody alone, Karofsky? It's not like anybody likes you anyway."

"Santana, I'm not getting any response! Should I take him to the Hospital Wing?"

Santana didn't reply. "Get out of here!" she yelled at Karofsky.

He didn't need to be told twice. Before Santana could incantate another jinx, he was gone.

The next moment, she was beside Artie at Blaine's side. "Blaine?"

Blaine groaned in pain. The back of his head throbbed, and he felt dizzy.

"That was a pretty nasty spill he took," Artie said. "Should we take him to the Hospital Wing?" he asked again.

"I don't know. Blaine, are you okay?"

Blaine slowly lifted his head, rubbing it with his hands, which he now realized were scraped and bleeding.

Santana took both his hands, pointing the tip of her wand at his palms. "_Ferula."_

Bandages twisted out of her wand and began to wind themselves around Blaine's hands.

Blaine sat up. "Thanks," he said.

"How's your head?"

Blaine winced. "Hurts, that's basically all that can explain it."

Artie put his wand to the back of Blaine's head.

Santana pushed the wand away quickly. "Maybe you should let me do it."

"Right, sorry."

"_Episkey_."

Blaine's head began to feel better already; the major throbbing was gone, and basically the only thing he could feel now was his newly bandaged hand still rubbing it. "Thanks again."

"We got you're back, B," Santana said with a small smile. "Always."

"Yeah. But there's one thing that I still don't understand," Artie piped up. "Why did you get yourself into this in the first place?"

"Hey, what was I supposed to do? Karofsky was taunting-" Blaine suddenly realized that something was missing. "Wait, where's Kurt?"

"That Hummel kid?" Artie asked curiously. "He's-"

The three of them glanced around the corridor, but no one else was in sight.

"Where did he go?"

"That ungrateful, no good little-" Santana began angrily.

"He's gone," Blaine said simply.

"The pansy ditched us."

"Hey!" Blaine defended.

"He left us to deal with that lousy neanderthal! Who does he think he is?"

"For your information," came an all-too familiar voice, "I didn't ditch you."

They all turned their heads to see Kurt walking up behind them with his arms folded and a frown etched onto his mouth.

A few seconds later, they spotted Professor Schuester directly behind him.

"Actually, I went to go get help," Kurt said defensively.

"Are you guys okay?" Schuester asked.

Blaine saw both Santana and Artie shoot Kurt irritated glares.

"Yeah, we're fine," Santana said.

"Are you alright?"

Blaine realized that Schuester was speaking directly to him. "Yeah, I'm okay."

"Is this something I should report to Figgins?"

"No," Blaine said quickly.

Schuester furrowed his brow.

"Really, I'm fine." Blaine looked at Kurt.

The brunette boy seemed to know what Blaine was thinking; he shrugged and shook his head.

Professor Schuester sighed. "Alright. You guys should go; dinner might have already started." He turned around and began to leave.

"Thank you, Professor," Kurt told him.

Schuester turned his head and nodded at him before he disappeared down the corridor toward the Great Hall.

A few silent seconds passed before Kurt realized that the trio still on the ground was staring at him. "What?"

"Why did you come back after you ran?" Santana snapped.

Kurt frowned. "Karofsky turned on you guys after he let go of me; I figured I should at least try to do something."

Santana snorted. "Yeah, because running to get the authorities is actually doing something!"

Blaine saw Kurt's hands curl into slight fists.

"I don't think you have room to tell me what I should or shouldn't do, Lopez."

Santana's eyes narrowed. "Excuse me, Hummel?"

Kurt rolled his eyes. "Forget it. I'm going to dinner." And with that, he turned on his heel and stalked off.

Blaine didn't realize that his feet had practically flew up from underneath him until he was gathering up his bag and slinging it over his shoulder.

"Blaine," Artie said, "what the hell do you think you're doing?"

Blaine turned to his best friends and looked at them through disdained eyes. "God, you guys can be so _obscene_ sometimes."

Neither of them had a chance to respond, because that next moment Blaine was taking off down the corridor after Kurt.

"Kurt! Wait up!"

The Slytherin boy stopped dead in his tracks after hearing his name. He turned toward the curly-haired boy and breathed in slowly. "What do you want, Blaine?"

Blaine slowly came to a stop in front of him. "Look, I'm really sorry about those guys-"

"What's their problem with me, anyway?"

"...I...I don't know. 'Something stupid about the segregation of all the houses."

Kurt's eyebrows rose, and he tried to hold back a snicker. "_Segregation_ of houses? Is that really what you just called it?"

Blaine couldn't help but allow his lip to curl. "Well, sorry anyways."

"It doesn't matter. It makes sense; I'm in Slyherin, which means most people refuse to talk to me in the first place."

Blaine's smile fell. "What do you mean?"

"It's just this stupid stereotype that everyone has decided to place me in with the rest of the house;" Kurt took his green and silver tie in his hand. "They all assume that _this_ makes me just like all the others: arrogant, reckless, rebellious, selfish, a no-good troublemaker."

"You don't seem like any of those things to me."

A light blush swept over Kurt's cheek. "Well..."

"You shouldn't care what other people say about you, especially if they're only jumping to conclusions about everything."

"Yeah, I know; it just gets a bit lonely sometimes, you know?"

Blaine gave him a sad look. "Really?"

Kurt shrugged.

Blaine looked away for a second, scanning the corridor to make sure they were alone. "You know, if you wanted, you and I could hang out sometime."

Kurt's eyes lit up. He nodded. "Yeah, I'd like that."

Blaine grinned.

"That reminds me: Word had been going around that a few of the boys in your house were starting a new club?"

Blaine eyed Kurt curiously. "Yeah?"

"Have you heard anything about that?"

* * *

><p>No I am not dead. Yes I am alive, but just barely because Season 3 of <em>Glee<em> is ending TOMORROW NIGHT! WHHYYYYYYY RYAN MURPHY WHHYYYYYYYY?

So, I'm out of school guys! WHOO-HOO!

My other Fic _Glee: Deleted Scenes_ should be updated soon. If you have any prompt ideas for a scene that you'd like for me to do, please Private Message to let me know!

THANKS EVERYONE!


	5. The Secret Meetings

**Chapter 5**

**The Secret Meetings**

Blaine had promised he would stay true to his gut feeling, to avoid doing something if it didn't feel right. His father had told him not to put himself in any trouble causing situation, had made him promise to do as his professors said, and he had promised. So why did sneaking out _after_ _curfew_ just to attend a secret glee club meeting- _with_ a boy who his best friends didn't approve of- give him the feeling he was doing the right thing? Well, either way, Blaine didn't really care.

The dormitory was silent except for Artie's light snoring in his four-poster bed, which was right beside Blaine's.

He slowly sat up, eyes skimming the circle of beds. He released his legs from the tangle of blankets he had managed to make while tossing and turning in an attempt to convince Artie that he had already fallen asleep, so as to avoid any further pointless conversations before Artie went to bed himself. Blaine silently swung his legs over the side and stood up. He was still wearing his Gryffindor uniform; he figured that trying to change back into them later might end up waking someone, and he definitely didn't want that happening tonight.

His father may have been teasing about the Howlers, but that didn't mean he wouldn't send Blaine one the moment he found out his son had put himself in major trouble by purposely doing something he specifically was forbidden to do in the first place.

The floor creaked quietly beneath his feet as he slipped on his shoes and stepped over to dig into his suitcase.

His hand felt around inside the large pile of clothes, packets of owl treats for Skye, pieces of parchment for letters he would write to his folks, and letters that he had received _from_ his folks, until he felt a sensation of the softest silk brushing his skin. He gripped the cloth and slowly pulled it out. Without hesitation, he slipped out of the dormitory and down the staircase, across the common room, and through the porthole. He heard the Fat Lady make a loud weezing sound inside her portrait as it swung open. Blaine quickly threw the cloth in his hand over his shoulders; it fell swiftly until the hem hit the floor, covering his whole body in the fabric.

"Who's there?" the Fat Lady said.

Blaine quickly whisked out of the passageway and into the corridor.

"I know you're there! I won't have any more of you no good troublemakers bribe me into keeping quiet! I'll shout for the authorities if you don't show yourself!"

Slightly panicking now, Blaine hesitantly gripped the cloak covering him. "What do you mean _any more of us_?" he said, pulling it completely over his head, revealing himself.

The Fat Lady gasped. "Mr. Anderson? What in the world are you doing out of bed at this hour?"

"Never mind that. What did you mean? Were there others who made it out?"

"That is none of your concern young man!" she snapped. "Now get back inside before I have to call Figgins on you!"

"I don't think it will matter with how loud you're shouting. Jeez, you don't have to wake up the whole castle, you know. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a friend waiting for me."

"No! No more of you foolish teenagers breaking the school rules! I had enough dealing with your grandfather! Now get back here young man!"

But Blaine was long gone, throwing the cloak back over his head as he dashed down the corridor.

His footsteps echoed against the hard stone architecture.

He passed rows and rows of armory standing against the walls, with his only source of light being the moonlight shining in through the open stone archways, and continued to run until he had reached the end of the corridor, stopping until there was no sound except the chirp of the crickets outside. He closely examined his surroundings, making sure he was alone, before pulling the cloak off again. "Kurt?" he whispered. "Are you here?" He stood in silence as he waited... The only sound he could hear was the gentle pattering of raindrops outside; he hadn't even realized it was raining until now. Wait, what time was it anyway? He hadn't bothered to check before he left the dormitory. Suddenly he flinched; he could have sworn he had just heard a pair of feet scuffling swiftly across the ground. His eyes darted around the empty space, hoping and praying to god that it wasn't a professor. He squinted his eyes, frustrated; they hadn't fully adjusted to the darkness yet, and the interior of the cloak made everything look the slightest bit blurry.

Then there was a silhouette approaching him, and Blaine had to bite back a gasp that tried to escape his lips as he spotted it.

His whole body froze in its bent stature; his legs' swift growth in the past year was beginning to make it difficult for him to cover his whole body under the cloak. From what Blaine could see, the dark figured appeared to be wearing a black hooded cape.

"Blaine? Where are you?"

He let out a sigh of relief, recognizing the voice as if he'd been listening to it his whole life.

The silhouette removed its hood and reached into its pocket, pulling out a wand. "_Lumos!_"

Blaine's knees fell weak as he gazed from under the cloak into the young boy's face glowing in the wand's light. Quickly, he pulled the cloak back over his head, causing Kurt to gasp.

"God, Blaine!" Kurt whispered, the light at the end of his wand immediately going out and sending them both back into darkness. "Don't scare me like that!"

"Sorry. Are you ready to go?"

"Well, I'm still not exactly a fan of being out after curfew, especially with but you said it would be worth the trouble, so I'll take your word for it." He shot Blaine a tiny smirk.

"No pressure, right?"

Kurt faked a scoff. "Pressure? Now why would I ever want to use such nonsense?"

Blaine chuckled. "Come on." He waved his hand to beckon Kurt closer.

Kurt seemed to hesitate for a moment before allowing his lip to curl. He met him halfway, and Blaine snatched up the edges of the cloak, throwing it over the two of them.

"I have to warn you, if either of us sees or hears _anything,_ we both need to get lower, okay?" Blaine said as he began to lead Kurt down the corridor. "This cloak isn't exactly long enough to cover two teenage boys, and it would be nice if we could manage to avoid getting detention before we even get there."

"You know," he heard Kurt retort directly behind him, "avoiding detention would have been a lot easier if we hadn't actually agreed to do this."

Blaine rolled his eyes even though he knew Kurt couldn't see it. "Well, here we are, so there's no turning back now."

"You make it sound like we're on our way to compete in the Triwizard Tournament."

"Is that supposed to be another reference to my grandfather?"

"Maybe."

"Figures."

* * *

><p>After ten full minutes of tip-toeing, exchanged whispers, and hushed laughter, Blaine felt they were safe enough to leave their hiding place.<p>

Slowly, he scanned the corridor before the two of them slipped out from beneath the cloak.

"I've never been to this part of the castle before," Kurt whispered.

Blaine grinned at him. "You really need to get out more. Back in second year, I used to sneak out here with Nick all the time."

Kurt glanced at him under a quirked eyebrow. "And you never got caught?"

"Not really."

"Not _really?"_

"I told my dad about it when I got home that summer, and I honestly expected him to yell at me or something, but he just laughed and called me a troublemaker... then he told me to never do it again."

"...Wait-"

"But the teachers never caught me, because I always had _this."_ Blaine ran his hand down the silk fabric of the Invisibility Cloak.

"You know, I was going to ask about that. That was your grandfather's, wasn't it?"

Blaine quirked an eyebrow at him, but his smile didn't fade. "You know too much about my ancestry."

Kurt chuckled. "Yeah, I feel like I'm stalking you or something." His eyes widened in realization at his statement. "I mean, uh..."

Blaine grinned. "Like I've said before, it's really just become rather flattering."

Kurt rolled his eyes. "Let's just find this room already, please?"

"After you," Blaine remarked, waving his hand to beckon them forward.

"You're the one who's supposed to know where it's at."

"Then don't rush me," Blaine teased.

"Blaine!"

"Shhhhh!"

Kurt winced; he hadn't realized his volume had raised a little too high. "Sorry," he whispered.

Blaine couldn't help but let his lip curl. _He's adorable,_ he thought.

_"Meow!"_

Both of the boys froze.

"What was that?"

Blaine felt terrifying chills shoot down his spine. Instinctively, he gripped the cloak tightly and lifted it above him. _"Get under!" _he whispered hurriedly.

"What?" Kurt said, obviously overcome by horror from the sound.

"_Get under now!" _Blaine told him a little more forcefully, grasping Kurt by the arm and yanking him back under the cloak.

"Blaine!"

"Shhhhhh!"

_"Meow!"_

"What the hell is going on?"

"We gotta get out of here now!" His hand still gripping Kurt's arm pulled him closer (which Blaine took a little too much notice of,) and steered him to follow. "Come on, let's go!"

_"Meow!"_

Blaine swore under his breath before leading the two of them down the corridor as quickly as possible without making a sound.

Soon enough, after many more fast paces past painted characters sleeping in their frames and motionless armory- which Blaine honestly felt like were staring right at the two of them,- they were both face to face with a large barren wall.

Kurt glanced over at Blaine for a split second. "So, this is it, huh?"

"Yep."

"So...how exactly do we get in?"

Blaine snorted, causing his hand to fly up to cover his mouth.

Kurt sniggered, and Blaine shot him an evil glare.

"I would think you'd know how."

"I don't know that much about the Room of Requirement, just that it's where your grandfather held all those secret meetings for 'Dumbledore's Army'- that's what it was called, right?"

Blaine nodded and smirked at him.

"And for the record, I don't know _everything_ about his history."

He shrugged.

"Care to demonstrate how the hell we're supposed to get in there?"

"Absolutely," Blaine replied, a large grin spreading across his face. After successfully scanning the corridor for any eavesdroppers or spies, he slipped out from under the cloak and stepped up in front of the wall. He started to walk in front of it, pacing quickly across. When he glanced over at Kurt, he received a look of confusion. He stopped. "What?"

Kurt's expression fell. "Oh, nothing. I just thought the way to get in was supposed to be far more complicated than that."

"Than what? Pacing in front of it?"

"Yeah."

"Well, you don't _just_ pace in front of it; you have to do it three times while thinking of the specific room you want to find."

"Oh...okay." His eyes lingered around the corridor before he ducked his head back under the cloak, obviously a little paranoid.

Blaine smiled. "Here, I'll show you." He went back to his pacing, repeating the same sentence in his head as he crossed in front of the wall. _I need to find the room where my friends are meeting. I need to find the room where my friends are meeting. I need to find the room where my friends are meeting._

Suddenly, Blaine heard a loud rumbling beside him, and a soft "wow" emit from Kurt's still-invisible mouth. After pausing for a few passing seconds in silence, he stood up and saw two large wooden doors right where the large barren wall had been. The corners of his lips twitched at the all-too-familiar sight.

* * *

><p>The room was large and rather spacious. The walls weren't visible, all being covered by large mirrors. At the very back of the room, there sat a gigantic table which sat in front of a burning fireplace.<p>

"Blaine," Wes said, standing up from the table, "it's good to see that you made it alright."

"I'm glad we made it at all," Blaine replied, stepping down to the front of the table and reaching over to shake Wes' hand.

"Did anyone see you?" Nick asked.

"Only the Fat Lady, but from what I made out from her yelling at me, she saw all of us."

"We'll worry about her later," Wes clarified as he sat back down, "but for now, none of the staff will find us anyway."

Blaine took a moment to notice that Kurt hadn't said anything yet since they walked in the room, and he turned to him, only to see him practically cowering in the corner, keeping himself in the shadow of the lamp light. "Kurt?" He turned back to the rest of the boys. "I hope you guys don't mind, but I brought a friend; he said he'd heard about the club, and he wanted to come along, so..." He gestured to Kurt, beckoning him.

Slowly, hesitantly, Kurt edged out of the shadows, making himself visible, and trying to put on the friendliest smile he could muster.

The room fell into dead silence.

Every single Gryffindor was looking at the Slytherin boy, making him feel slightly angry, and uncomfortable on all levels.

Kurt's brow furrowed, and the corners of his lips fell into an extremely visible frown.

Blaine noticed. "Kurt, what's up?" he asked as he edged back up the steps to where the other boy stood.

"...Well, it's just that all of you're friends are looking at me like I'm not welcome, so I think I'll just go." He turned on his heel and attempted to storm out, but then there was Blaine's hand grabbing his arm.

"Kurt!"

He spun around to scowl at Blaine. "What?"

"Nobody said you weren't welcome."

"Why do you always think that none of us like you?" Jeff piped up.

Kurt's eyebrows knitted together. "I'm sorry?"

"I just think it's weird that throughout the past five years, Blaine is the only non-Slytherin I've ever seen you talk to."

"...I...I..." Kurt stuttered, "I have a girlfriend. She's in Ravenclaw..."

Blaine bit his lip, fighting off a growl forming in his throat.

"Well, I guess you guys must be pretty private, because I've never seen you with her," Jeff said rather flatly.

"Maybe because you, like most everyone else at this school, don't care to pay attention to _people like_ _me_."

"Stop assuming that all of us hate you, Hummel. We're from different houses, so what? Doesn't me we all have to loathe you."

Kurt didn't respond... He didn't know _how _to respond. "I...uh...I think...I think I should go."

"Kurt, just hang on a second," Blaine said.

"I'm the only non-Gryffindor here; it feels awkward even just _being_ here."

"Doesn't mean you aren't welcome," Wes said.

Kurt stopped dead, halfway turned toward the doors again.

"Look, Kurt," Wes said, clasping his hands in front of him on top of the table, "it's just not very often us Gryffindors interact with Slytherins; the majority of them have a tendency to give us hell every time we cross their path, which is why we tend to avoid them as much as possible."

"Come on, Kurt," Blaine insisted, "just stick around and see what's gonna happen. After alll, you _were_ the one who asked _me_ about coming here in the first place."

"The club wasn't designed for just _one_ specific house," Wes assured.

Kurt still didn't speak.

"Come on," Blaine said with a little more pleading in his voice than he had intended.

Kurt turned his gaze to lock eyes with the other boy. After a small pause, he swallowed audibly and took a breath so his shoulders rose and fell. "Fine, I'll stick around."

Blaine's lip curled into a miniscule smile. "Good."

"Very well," Wes said, "you're both welcome to take a seat now if you'd like." He gestured to the last empty couch in the room- a rather worn and torn set of leather- that sat in front of a currently barren table.

"It is my pleasure to announce that the first official Warblers meetings has now commenced!" He slammed the mallot down, and the room erupted with hollers and cheers. Wes stood up with David and Nick following suit.

"So," Nick said, "who'd like to sing for us first?"

...The entire room was sucked into a brief silence once again...

"Not everybody at once," David joked.

No one responded. Every boy turned his head to glance around at the others, searching for a brave soul to volunteer.

Blaine's eyes fell on Kurt again, whose gaze was glued to his clasped hands resting in his lap. At that moment, something sparked down in the bottom of Blaine's gut. "I'll go." He said it without really thinking.

All heads turned on him.

"I'll sing first." He stood up from the couch rather abruptly, lightly hitting the back of his calves against it.

"Well done, Blaine," Nick said, flashing his friend a supportive smile, "the floor is all yours."

Quickly, Blaine made his way to the middle of the room as the three leaderboys sat back down once more. "This song has been one of my favorites since I was a kid; back at home I always dance around my bedroom singing my heart out to it. This song is called-"

_BANG!_

The entire troop of boys jumped a foot in the air.

"What the hell was that?" Wes said.

Kurt spoke up. "Um...guys? Was that huge hole in the wall there when we came in?"

All boys snapped their heads where Kurt directed.

A large crevice had formed into the back wall beside the front doors where they had all come in from.

"Oh no," muttered David.

Wes stood up for the third time and swiftly rushed up to the crevice, peeking through it for a split second before he let out a yelp of fright and stumbled backward as a much older man's voice from behind the wall shouted "_Reducto!_"

_BANG!_

The floor trembled violently, and Blaine barely saved himself from falling flat on his face. His first instinct caused his hand to fly to his wand, but once he realized who the shouting voice belonged to his hand switched to his other pocket and pulled out the Invisibility Cloak. "Kurt!" He darted toward his Slytherin friend and flung the Cloak over both of them. "Get down!" he told him as he caught a glimpse of Headmaster Figgins' angry expression.

Kurt didn't need to be told twice.

The two of them ducked down to the foot of the couch as the other boys shouted Invisibility charms at themselves.

_"Finite!"_ Figgins yelled, repeating the spell as he pointed his wand every which way around the room.

Blaine watched under the cloak as one by one the other Gryffindors became visible and horrified.

And then the entire room fell silent. No one moved, Figgins' wand still stood at the ready, and Blaine's feet were falling asleep.

"You tried to hold a secret student meeting, and you snuck out after curfew. I'm _very_ disappointed in all of you."

None of the boys said anything.

"Are there any more of you?"

"No, sir," Wes answered shaking his head.

Guilt filled Blaine's insides as he realized he and Kurt hadn't been seen.

"Very well then; all of you to my office _now_."

Blaine felt his heart grow heavy and a lump form in his throat as he watched his friends vacate the room with Figgins following them on their heels.

The room fell into silence once again.

Slowly, Blaine lifted his head out from beneath the cloak and stood up. "I am _the_ worst friend in the world-"

"No, Blaine!" Kurt said, standing abruptly and sliding the cloak off. "Don't you dare blame yourself for any of this."

"Kurt, it's my fault; the Fat Lady warned me, I should have listened."

"No, Blaine, that is not what happened. The other guys should have made sure that this room was more secure."

"We shouldn't have agreed to coming tonight."

"There's nothing we could have done."

"I should have gone with them!"

"And what good would that do?"

"They wouldn't have to hate my guts like they probably do. I should have been a good friend and gone and suffered with them!"

"Go then, Blaine!"

Blaine was slightly taken aback. "W-What?"

"Go with them!" Kurt repeated mockingly, his voice raising ever so slightly. "If you hurry, you should be able to catch up!"

"...I...I can't..." Blaine's eyes fell to the floor. "My dad would kill me."

"Then don't talk to me about how it's all your fault, because it's not Blaine."

Blaine didn't respond.

Kurt's eyes softened as they continued to follow Blaine's guilty expression. "Come on," he said, nudging him in the arm, "let's get out of here. We'll face the other guys tomorrow.

Blaine's eyebrows rose in surprise. "No, Kurt! I can't put you in that position!"

"I was here when it happened, I could have said something too, so they'll probably be pissed at _both_ of us; plus, you shouldn't _have_ to face them by yourself anyway.

Blaine couldn't help but smile, and he brought his hand up to grip Kurt's shoulder. "Thank you."

"Now let's get out of here in case they changed their minds and decided to rat us out after all."

* * *

><p>That's the end of this chapter guys! You didn't seriously think I'd leave the Warblers out of the story, did you? Bwahahaha!<p>

Hope you all enjoyed. Next chapter shall be up, I promise; I don't know when, but it will come. Always.


	6. The Letter

**Chapter 6**

**The Letter**

Blaine had already figured he wouldn't be sleeping very well, yet he couldn't help but groan when the reflection from the sun through the window hit his eyes after he had finally dozed off for a while. Slowly, he sat up and scratched the back of his neck. He reached over, picked up his pocket watch, and saw that he was already late for breakfast, causing him to swear loudly.

* * *

><p>"It's about time," Artie said as his best friend finally sat down beside him at the Gryffindor table.<p>

"Sorry, I overslept."

"Have a little too much fun last night?"

Blaine caught his tone and shot him an evil glare. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"You went to that glee club meeting last night."

Blaine's eyebrows rose and knitted together. "How do you know?"

"I followed you out of the dormitory."

"I thought you were sleeping."

"I was; I woke up when you closed your suitcase. I followed you down to the commom room, but I couldn't see you and I saw the port hole open, so I assumed you had your Invisibility Cloak on. Then I heard the Fat Lady yelling at you when you ran out."

"...Oh..."

"You know, you really should cast that Muffling Charm if you don't want anyone hearing you."

"...Sorry."

"The thing I still don't understand is what made you decide to go in the first place."

"What?" Blaine asked, beginning to feel irritated.

"I mean, you got so worked up when I asked you about it the other day."

"_I_ was just asking _you_ about it!"

"Blaine, it's a boys-only glee club."

"And I have loved singing ever since I was a kid, so why not get involved in something I might like?"

Artie didn't respond at first, and Blaine hoped that would be the end of it.

He reached over and poured some pumpkin juice into his goblet; his insides weren't exactly in the mood for food this morning.

"Blaine, there's something I need to tell you."

"Don't bother," Blaine snapped instinctively; _he _wasn't exactly in the mood for talking about the night before anymore.

"Look, I just wanted to say-"

"Just lay off, Artie; I'm not in the mood! I let the other guys take the fall for the meeting, and they all probably hate my guts right now."

"They're all up in Professor Schuester's office right now and it's _my_ fault, Blaine!"

Blaine's eyes darted to look at him. "...How is it your fault?"

"When I followed you out of the common room, the Fat Lady started yelling at me about being out of bed; I tried to quiet her, but Figgins was there before I could take off. He threatened to give me detention, so I told him about the meeting; I said I was going to report it to the faculty..."

Anger began to burn in Blaine's eyes. "It was _you_?" _You're_ the one who ratted us out?"

"Blaine, I'm sorry. He threatened me with detention."

"Did you tell him who went to the meeting?"

"No, just that you guys were holding one."

Blaine stood up abruptly then.

"Blaine! I swear, I'm sorry!"

"Forget it, Artie," Blaine said flatly before turning to leave.

"Where are you going?"

"To confront the guys. Where did you say they were?"

"Professor Schuester's office."

Blaine was gone the moment Artie finished the last word.

"Blaine, hang on!"

He refused to answer as he stormed out between the tables and disappeared into the corridor.

"Blaine! Wait up!"

He spun around at the voice, and his expression lightened. "What's up?" he said, trying to fake a small smile.

"I know where you're going, and I'm coming with you," Kurt told him firmly.

Blaine frowned. "No, Kurt, I don't think you are."

"Blaine, I was there too. If you're going to talk to the other guys, then I'm going with you, and there's nothing you can say to make me change my mind."

Blaine inhaled and sighed, letting out a small grunt of frustration at the end. "Fine, but if we both get detention, you get to be there when I get a pile of Howlers from my dad in the post."

Kurt's lip curled. "Fair enough."

* * *

><p>"Professor, you have to hear us out!" Nick said. "We were just trying to start a club where guys could just be themselves with each other! You can't let Figgins give us detention for that!"<p>

"You guys didn't get detention for trying to start a glee club," Professor Schuester clarified, "you got detention for getting caught sneaking out after curfew to do it."

"We asked beforehand, but Figgins wouldn't let us make one!" Jeff told him. "He said he didn't like the idea of Hogwarts having clubs that were strictly for one gender; that it would ruin the purpose of equality in the school."

"Then maybe you guys should go compromise with him; tell him you'll allow girl in if he lets you make it an official glee club, and if he agrees, I can be your club director."

Every single boy in the room exchanged funny looks with each other, all of them obviously far from satisfied by this idea.

"Professor," Wes spoke up, "we held the meeting in secret for a reason. We started as an independent boys-only club without any unnecessary adult supervision, and we would appreciate it if it stayed that way."

Schuester frowned. "It's your choice boys. I suppose if you manage to sway Figgins enough he may take you up on it, but until then I'll see all of you in detention. You are all dismissed."

Outside the doorway, Blaine and Kurt were pressed up against the wall and listening in to the conversation.

Blaine's hands curled into gentle fists as he heard Schuester's final statement. _Detention,_ he thought, _just great! Let's see if they'll even look at me now! _Suddenly, he heard footsteps and low angry grumbles approaching them. His first thought was to run for it, but guilt crashed over him again and he knew that this time he'd have to face them like a man.

"What are you doing here, Blaine?" Nick spat as he spotted him, anger dripping from his tongue like sulfuric acid.

Blaine was taken slightly aback by his attacking tone. "I...I wanted to-"

"You ditched us last night," Nick interrupted him. "Why?"

"I... I'm sorry! My folks would have killed me!"

"You didn't think the rest of us will get our asses kicked just as bad when _our_ folks find out?"

"Nick, easy on him," Wes cut in, lightly pulling him back away by the shoulder. "This isn't his fault."

"No, Wes, it is," Blaine blurted. "I ran and hid when I should have stayed loyal to the group; I should have taken the fall too. We _all_ were part of this."

"Don't blame yourself. I was the one who started this club in the first place."

"You all should really hate me right now..."

"Well, we don't," Jeff said.

Blaine smiled at him.

"Actually," Wes continued, "we werre considering making you the lead."

Something in Blaine's chest swelled at these words. "W...What?"

"We were considering going to talk to Figgins later about the club, but now we're kind of just assuming that- knowing Figgins- he'll reject any proposal of ours until we allow girls to join the club. We're simply going to continue the club in the Gryffindor common room. That being said, we want _you_ to be the new head Warbler."

"...I...I don't understand...I thought you all would be pissed off at me."

"Some of us might be," Jeff said shooting a look at Nick who rolled his eyes. "Though, it wasn't your fault we were busted."

"Sneaking out after curfew wasn't exactly the smartest idea in the first place," Wes said with a sheepish smile appearing on his face.

"But wait," Blaine said, "putting the club in the common room? That means kids from all the other houses won't be allowed to join anymore; we'll just be restricted to Gryffindor-only."

"We thought about that," Nick explained, his tone of voice much easier and calmer now, "and we decided that if we really want to keep this club going the way we want to run it, it's just going to have to be that way."

"But-" Blaine turned his head sharply to look behind himself, expecting a certain brunette to catch his glance, and a certain pair of hurt blue eyes to meet his; he was sadly disappointed. "Wait, where's-"

"We're sorry, Blaine, it just has to be that way."

"But-"

"_End of discussion,_" Wes said firmly.

Blaine's heart sank, knowing Kurt was probably feeling the same way he was right now. The two of them had just started becoming real friends, hanging out whenever time away from their friends would permit it, but now the option of joining an all-house club together was gone; and Blaine still didn't even know what Kurt's singing voice sounded like.

He felt all Warbler eyes weighing down on him.

"Our next meeting is this weekend. We're considering an impromptu performance and we need to pick out our song and who's singing what before anything else; we hope to see you there."

This time Blaine didn't attempt to protest. Instead, he stood and watched as the rest of his team mates pushed past him.

"Why do you hang out with him?"

Blaine wheeled back around to face Nick. "What?"

"You've been talking to Hummel quite a bit lately. Why?"

Blaine's fingers curled involuntarily; he didn't appreciate the tone returning to Nick's voice. "Because he's my friend."

Nick snorted. "You can't be serious."

"I am," Blaine replied flatly. "Who I hang out with is my choice."

Nick leaned over and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I just gotta warn you man, I don't like him; a lot of us don't."

"Doesn't mean I can't."

Nick's eyes narrowed. "Fine, be careful who you choose to _waste_ your time with, Blaine."

Blaine scoffed. "I'm wasting my- okay, wow!"

"Look, all I'm trying to say is you can't trust a guy like Hummel."

"His name is Kurt, and _you_ don't know him at all." Blaine turned on his heel abruptly, leaving Nick in his dust.

"Blaine!"

He ignored his name and continued walking.

Nick grunted in frustration as Blaine turned the corner back to the Great Hall.

* * *

><p>Blaine had a huge tendency to over-think things. Sometimes if someone wouldn't respond to his letter within a few days he would assume that either they were angry at him or something bad had happened. If someone was in a bad mood and snapped at him, he would worry that he had done something wrong and the issue would bother him for at least the rest of that day. This situation was one of those times.<p>

Blaine didn't see Kurt the whole afternoon, and when evening came he still wasn't anywhere to be found. Blaine prayed to god this wasn't a bad sign, that Kurt wasn't avoiding him. He'd heard the whole conversation about the future of the Warblers, Blaine was sure; he could only imagine how Kurt felt right now.

That night, Blaine sat in his four-poster writing a letter to his folks; it seemed to be the only thing able to take his mind off the boy for a while.

_Mum and Dad,_

_I don't understand how so much can change in only a few weeks. How does time pass by so smoothly yet so roughly at the same time?_

It was a tap on the window that startled him, and when he looked up he saw an all-too familiar barn owl flapping outside.

He scrambled out of bed and edged the window open to allow the owl into the dormitory.

The owl hooted as it landed on the concrete tile.

"Pavarotti!" Blaine knelt down beside him. "What are you doing here?"

Pavarotti hooted again and stuck out his leg, where a small roll of parchment was tied.

Blaine eyed it curiously before reaching over to remove and unravel it.

The handwriting was unfamiliar to him, though he immediately realized to whom it belonged.

_Blaine,_

_I'm sorry I took off so abruptly today; your friends just made it far too obvious I wasn't welcome anymore. _

_I know I've already said this, but I'm saying it again: None of this is your fault; a lot of it is mine. I'll make it up to all of you somehow, I promise._

_If you ever want to hang out one-on-one, I'll be all for it. It's not that I want to keep our friendship private, but it may have to be like this until your friends warm up to me- that is, if they ever do._

_I heard your first Quidditch game is this weekend, so in case I don't see you before then, I'm wishing you the best of luck._

_Until then, good night, Blaine._

_-Kurt_

Blaine's stomach dropped.

Gryffindor was playing Ravenclaw in two days. They didn't have a strategy.

"Blaine?"

He didn't even have to look up to recognize his best friend's voice. Remembering the events from that morning, anger returned to Blaine's thought process. "Hey," he said plainly.

"You okay? You were kinda quiet all day..."

"Yeah, I'm alright."

Artie detected the strong monotony in his voice. "You're still pretty pissed, aren't you?"

His question made Blaine finally look up to meet his eyes. "Why did you do it?"

Artie broke the eye contact to wonder his gaze over to the window with a small guilty exhale. "I... I was just trying to keep you from getting hurt."

Blaine's grip on Kurt's letter tightened just enough to wrinkle the parchment a little. "Hurt?" he repeated venomously, the "t" spitting out in annoyance.

Artie's hands slid down to hide in his jean pockets. "You know what I'm talking about."

Blaine released the letter and allowed it to fall down onto his bed. "You're just like everyone else."

"So the others are telling you the same thing? Well, have you considered actually listening to your friends?"

"I have the freedom to hang out with whomever I want to, and if you can't accept that then I'm not sure I can call you a real friend."

"Well I find that kinda offensive to be honest; you've only know this guy for how long?"

"Doesn't matter! He's a nice guy and you don't know him, so therefore you have no room to judge him. If you're seriously going to keep this up then please just leave me alone."

The room fell silent.

Artie didn't reply, and instead gave him a last glare before turning on his heel and storming back down the stairs.

Blaine's hands came up to fist his curls in frustration.

Why did everyone have to treat Kurt that way? He didn't do anything to them. They were all wrong, they didn't know him at all... not like he did... Blaine had only known him for about a month now, and yet there was something about Kurt that he couldn't help but admire. Kurt was kind and polite, but he wasn't afraid to speak his mind when it was necessary.

Blaine flopped down onto his bed with a huff, reaching for the parchment again. He examined the slight wrinkles in the paper before shrugging and folding it back up. He stretched his free hand to open his side table drawer, where the letter would rest until he decided to look at it again. He took a moment to debate whether or not he should send Kurt a quick reply, but his exhaustion level was becoming too powerful, and a few minutes later he was slowly drifting off into his subconscious.

* * *

><p>Hey everybody. Holly hell, I know it's been forever since I've updated! I feel like the worst writer ever. Well, now I'm back on my writing streak so hoorah! I promised I would continue writing till the story is over, and I plan to keep that promise.<p>

Anyways, if you liked this chapter, leave me a review! If you hated it, you should still leave me a review (but please be nice?)

My hopes are that my writing has improved in the last six months after my hardcore Composition classes.

That's all for now, peace out!


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